Social Action and Skateboards

Monday 23 September saw a national campaign launched to tackle the stigma of youth loneliness, with research highlighting how young people say they feel lonely more than any other age group.

What we're doing

Our Youth Co-operative Action project is tackling this head on, encouraging young people aged 14-19 to come together and confront the issues in their community that matter to them. Our Manchester and Oldham cohorts of the project joined together at Projeks skatepark for a unique session, working together to learn new skills, and most importantly, stay upright!

Hidden message

The message of the campaign was brought to life using yellow socks, with all those taking part urged to don a pair themselves. As a piece of clothing, socks are rarely seen, just like loneliness. Young people say they feel lonely more often than any other age group, with only a quarter confident enough to talk about it and less than a third comfortable asking for help if they needed it.

Co-operative values

Co-operative values are right at the heart of our Youth Co-operative Action project, fostering a sense of togetherness and leaving a lasting legacy in towns and cities across England including Plymouth, Manchester, Oldham and the birthplace of the modern co-operative movement, Rochdale!